It's high time shooters resume training: Coach Deepali Deshpande

Deepali Deshpande feels that a camp is the need of the hour and the shooters need to train differently in order to be competitive ahead of Tokyo Olympics.
For representational purposes (Photo | AP)
For representational purposes (Photo | AP)

CHENNAI: Boxing commenced organised training camp, so did wrestling and weightlifting, to name a few, in the country. But shooting has missed out on that front so far. But the sport might finally join the list, with talks on to conduct a camp from next month.

National rifle coach Deepali Deshpande feels that a camp is the need of the hour and the shooters need to train differently in order to be competitive ahead of next year's Tokyo Olympics.

"We (shooters and coaches) were relaxed (during the pandemic). Now we have to get that competitiveness back. We really need to work differently. It (training) had always been a gradual process and there had never been this kind of unusual situation. We had nothing to do for five months or so and now we have seven-eight months to prepare for Olympics," Deepali said.

Deepali and rest of the coaches from rifle, pistol and shotgun recently had an online meeting with the National Rifle Association of India (NRAI) and Sports Authority of India (SAI). The Olympian revealed that most of the coaches and shooters are ready for a camp and have proposed the idea to NRAI.

"It's high time we resume organised training. We have been training at home, many of the shooters have ranges at home, but that's different to training in a group with the national coaches. So we need to start because the rest of the world has already begun," she said, adding that they want the camp for shooters from the Olympic core group to begin at the Dr Karni Singh Shooting Range in New Delhi as early as possible. The NRAI and SAI are currently working on the proposal and could possibly announce the dates soon.

Some of the shooters are based in and around Delhi, and they have been using the facility at the range. But most of the shooters will be coming from outside. With the pandemic still on and airline rules unclear (baggage rules etc), the outstation shooters will have to undergo more trouble than usual. That was one of the reasons why the coaches have requested a longer camp. 

"It gives all of us enough time to adjust to the new normal, get used to the standard operating procedures. It will also give us a good time to assess the shooters. We need to check their progress, see where they stand right now. Also, it makes sense for shooters. Coming for just 10-12 days and going back is an unnecessary hassle," Deepali assessed.

There have been attempts in the past to conduct a camp for shooters. The NRAI had planned to restart camp in early August. However, due to logistical concerns, those plans had been shelved then.

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